May 20, 2013

The Arboretum

Finding ourselves on the east side of town for a brunch date, Dan and I took advantage of the opportunity by spending the afternoon at the Arboretum.

We loved it. It's the sort of place you can wander for hours and get lost. Or alternately, the perfect setting for laying down a blanket for a picnic or good book. We opted for the walking, which allowed us get close-up and personal with an amazing variety of trees, plants and flowers from all around the world.

We saw everything from native cacti from South Africa, a
lush rose garden, an herb collection inspired by Shakespeare's writings, a
waterfall, a Victorian cottage—all set against the backdrop of the Santa
Gabriel Mountains. Dan spotted plenty of birds to
admire, most notably the dozens of peacocks that roamed around the joint.

After purchasing some fancy-leaf geraniums (there was a special show the weekend we went), Dan and I headed back to the west side but were so invigorated by the warm weather and the outdoors that we didn't want the day to end. So we walked over to our local wine bar and dined al fresco until we were both a little drunk, happy and full.